The Louise Bogan Award for Artistic Merit and Excellence is awarded to books of poems contributing in an innovative and distinct way to American poetry.

The award is open to ALL poets, regardless of publication history. All manuscripts must be written primarily in English, and authors must reside primarily in the United States. Previously published or self-published books are not eligible for submission.

Each award winner receives $1000 and twenty copies of their book, along with assistance in marketing the book.

The judge for the 2025 competition is Randall Mann.

We are keen to encourage quality, so suggest writers to check their stories before submitting using Prowritingaid. They have free and paid versions and are the best writing software we know to help improve grammar, readability and check for repetition, ‘sticky’ sentences and suggest alternatives.